John Cena, CM Punk and The Rock on Raw

A superb verbal confrontation between CM Punk and The Rock set the stage for the biggest WWE Championship match in recent memory.

JEFF WILENJAWBREAKER/ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR

John Cena, CM Punk and The Rock on Raw

Monday Night Raw started with an excellent match between John Cena and Dolph Ziggler, with the former getting the big win.

Sandwiched in the middle was the match of the night with CM Punk retaining his WWE Championship in a Tables, Ladders and Chairs match against Ryback.

The show finished strong with a verbal confrontation between Punk and The Rock that sets the stage for the biggest WWE Championship match in recent memory -- taking place in less than three weeks at the Royal Rumble.

Let's review:

Opening segment with John Cena, Dolph Ziggler, AJ Lee and Big E. Langston. REACT: I didn't care for this, as Cena went on too long and then made numerous silly jokes. It was elementary school humor. It didn't keep my attention. Ziggler helped the segment with his responses. Langston booking Ziggler in a match against Cena was strange.

John Cena beats Dolph Ziggler. REACT: Very strong match pace. Highlights were Cena's suplex and Ziggler's seven elbows early on. Langston's punch (although the cameraman totally missed the 2 count) and AJ's distraction shockingly only led to two counts. There were some solid counters at the end on the five-knuckle shuffle and when the referee was knocked out and soon replaced. Very nice finish. I have no major complaints. It was a superb match to kick off the show and a big win for Cena, even if it hurts Ziggler some.

Kaitlyn beats Eve Torres by countout. REACT: I'm not sure what it means for the Divas Division when Kaitlyn has been chasing the Divas Championship for four months. It can't be good. I liked the shoelace tie angle and thought the match was above Divas norm. I'm OK with Eve running off with the title. Kaitlyn's offense was impressive, again. Funny that Tamina Snuka's dominance was mentioned. I wonder if we might get a Triple Threat title match at WrestleMania.

Segment with Santino Marella, Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat and Wade Barrett. REACT: Unless Steamboat is going to wrestle Barrett the next few months, I'm not certain the purpose of this. Nice to hear a Randy "Macho Man" Savage reference by Marella for his favorite match ever. Barrett saying Steamboat is "blowing smoke" was comical.

Randy Orton and 3MB segment. REACT: Orton is weak on the microphone. A "harp?" Really?

Rhodes Scholars beat Kane/Daniel Bryan. REACT: I'm sick of this feud. The best part of this match was the comical mention than Sandow's family has been advisors to the presidents since 1808. Kane had major trouble on the top rope. That stunk. Bryan's flying knee off the apron to Sandow was superb. The Bryan knee tweak angle was fine. Very strong finish with Rhodes pinning Bryan.

Sheamus promo with 3MB. REACT: Joking, which was OK. Better than the one Orton had.

Antonio Cesaro beats The Great Khali. REACT: Smart leg angle. Funny "Miz is awesome" chant in a match The Miz was just commentating. Cesaro easily had the finishing move of the night. Very impressive.

Brad Maddox and Paul Heyman. REACT: This has to be going somewhere, right? Right?

Sheamus beats Jinder Mahal. REACT: Sheamus toying with Mahal and the rest of 3MB was fine. Funny, the announcers called Sheamus' chest hits "drums." But then he did 10 more "drums?" Another 1 over 3. Shame, shame. And three Brogue Kicks?

CM Punk beats Ryback. REACT: Good to see Punk's knee look 100 percent. This match had a big-match feel, as most TLC matches do. Ryback's suplex of Punk on to the ladder was solid. I liked the sidestep on the spear, but it looked a little mistimed. Ryback press-slamming Punk on the ladder, and messing it up, came across nicely. Ryback's toss of Punk over the rope was superb. I liked the finish with the lights going out as Ryback was about to grab the title, and The Shield appeared on the ladder. That finish is refreshingly different. The powerbomb into the table/steel steps wasn't the cleanest of moves, but it worked.

Daniel Bryan's knee hurt, and Vickie Guerrero shows up 2 1/2 hours into the show? REACT: Very awkward to see Vickie show up so late in the show. What she said, though, was important, as I expect something big to happen when Dr. Shelby holds his four-month evaluation of Kane and Bryan. The "monster" and "nerd" back-and-forth between Bryan and Kane was comical. It'll be a shame when this gig ends, but it can only go on for so much longer.

The Big Show squashes Kofi Kingston. REACT: Man, who did Kingston tick off Monday? Wow.

CM Punk talks. REACT: Holding the title for 414 days is super-impressive. Punk's promo, while superb, was a little too insider even for me. While I understood all of it, I don't think most fans did. I liked Punk pushing "truth" and "honesty." I liked Punk bashing the company man Cena, the catch-phraser Bryan, the dancer Brodus Clay and emphasizing the greatness of Little Jimmy over Tyson Kidd. Punk saying his just over one-year reign was more impressive than the 30-year reign of Bruno Sammartino is laughable. True, Hulk Hogan didn't wrestle TLC's vs. guys like Ryback, but TLC's weren't even around then. Punk mentioning a "crying" Ric Flair, a "smile to tears" Shawn Michaels and a "misses wrestling" Edge was too much. The point for the fans to hate Punk was made when Punk called the fans "weak," "dishonest" and "liars."

The Rock reacts. REACT: I liked how The Rock got straight to the point, calling Punk "delusional" and emphasizing "20 days" until the Royal Rumble match. I loved The Rock's "ice cream" dig at Punk. The Rock's new catch phrases weren't horrible, either.

The result. REACT: I liked Punk emphasizing that The Rock is in the "big leagues. Punk's "arms are just too big to box with god" line was lost on many, including myself. The Rock's literal "candy (rear-end)" promo with the mention of Punk's tattoos was nicely done.

ANALYSIS: There were a few concerns with this show. And it didn't have the "talk about moment" I was expecting. Nothing on the show shocked me, which I was also hoping for. However, it was a heck of a lot more entertaining than the BCS college football championship. There were two excellent matches and a great set-up for the main event at the Royal Rumble. I can't kill this show on the grade, but I won't ace it either. And for the record, I don't think anyone won the ending segment promo battle. Both men did their usual -- Punk, when called upon, and The Rock, his usual routine. Neither was poor or weak. Both were quite good, and I enjoyed the last segment for the most part. GRADE: B.